Fact-Checking Whether Health Reform Will Kill Every Old Person You Know
It seems that the favorite argument of both Democrats and Republicans in regard to Medicare reform is talking about body counts. Yes, please, lawmakers, scare us. Because we’re 12 years old, and we like to be bludgeoned with hyperbole on a daily basis.
WaPo‘s “The Fact Checker” reports:
First, Health and Human Service Secretary Kathleen Sebilius said that cancer patients would “die sooner” under the House Republican Medicare proposal. (She earned Three Pinocchios for that statement.) Now, Rep. Phil Gingrey has charged that a provision in the Obama health-care law — the creation of an Independent Payment Advisory Board — will lead to the death of people on dialysis or cancer chemotherapy because of “rationing” by “bureaucrats.”
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The Facts
Beginning in 2014, the 15-member IPAB (made up of experts subject to Senate confirmation) is designed to help reduce the rate of growth in Medicare spending if it exceeds a certain target rate. The board would make recommendations to reduce costs.
Then, beginning in 2018, if the targets are not met, the board will submit a plan to the White House and Congress to achieve the necessary cuts. Congress could pass a different set of cuts or reject the IPAB recommendations with a three-fifths vote in the Senate.
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On the surface, the IPAB appears aimed at doing the same thing as the House Republican Medicare plan– reducing the runaway costs of Medicare, except on a faster track. (The GOP plan would not kick in until 2021, just a few years before the Medicare hospital fund begins to run dry.)
The dispute really centers on a philosophical divide between the parties. Democrats would rely on independent experts (such as doctors and consumer advocates) to recommend the cuts; Republicans would rely on the insurance marketplace to control costs. We can’t fact check deeply held philosophical beliefs, except to note that such differences sometimes loom larger than they really are and prevent people from acknowledging obvious similarities.
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The Pinocchio Test
We can certainly understand that Gingrey may have philosophical concerns over the IPAB, but that does not excuse his leap of logic that it will lead to the deaths of seniors. Even with the potentially vague language on rationing in the law, the board members would need to be confirmed by the Senate, and Congress would have the opportunity to reject the recommendations. Both parties profess to be concerned about the rising costs of Medicare, so it would be better to dwell on the potential areas of agreement rather than exaggerate differences.
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